A blanket ban on international trade (placement into Appendix 1) of the Atlantic bluefin tuna (ABFT) was proposed at the 15th Conference of the Parties of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, which attracted global attention. However, the resource
utilization issue and its concerns have expanded to include the Pacific bluefin tuna (PBFT).
This study aimed to summarize current trends on resource management of PBFT and verify how
the demand and supply in Japan has changed. Japan has the largest market in tuna consumption (approximately 80% in ABFT and PBFT) and is also a major fishing country.
To recover the PBFT resource, fishing controls and a setting of upper tonnage limit have been introduced based on conservation management measures of the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries
Commission. The following points were confirmed as to trends and features of the demand and supply in Japan: (1) the recent supply on 5-year average decreased by approximately 20%–30% compared with
the peak in 2006. (2) Bluefin tuna showed a market price increase, particularly large one (≥100 kg), which is captured by longline and/or pole and line in coastal areas and mainly supplied to middle/high-class
restaurants including Edo-style-sushi bar. (3) However, an increasing price trend of bluefin tuna captured by coastal purse seine fishery and farmed tuna including imported one, both of which are forming substantial part of supermarket demand, was observed for only a few years immediately after the publicity of the policy for strengthening resource management.